


comfort

by orphan_account



Category: The Outsiders - All Media Types
Genre: Cuddling, Fluff, Johnny is sad, M/M, Nightmare, Sharing a Bed, dallas is trying his best, first fic, short fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-23
Updated: 2019-06-23
Packaged: 2020-05-16 22:09:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 633
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19327066
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Johnny Cade wasn't okay, but he sure as hell could act like it.





	comfort

**Author's Note:**

> so! this is my first fic. please bear with me, this is probably horrible.

Johnny Cade isn't okay.

Everyone knows about his parents. How his dad blacks out drinking and beats him, while his mom yells.

They see how he tenses up every time someone raises their voice, and how he flinches away when people move towards him. They watch him  
get startled by loud noise and sudden movements. They can see how he gets anxious anytime a soc comes near.

No one brings it up.

\---

Dallas's room at Buck's becomes another emergency housing for Johnny.

When its too cold in winter for him to stay in the lot, but he runs in the wrong direction from the Curtis's place, he ends up with Dally.

It confused him at first, why Johnny didn't just turn around and go the the Curtis's. Why he didn't pay more attention to which direction he runs off in. Dallas didn't understand it, but he sure as hell didn't mind.

Some nights, if Johnny didn't show up, he'd walk over to the lot and make sure he wasn't trying to bare the cold. Sometimes he was, and he'd walk him down to the Curtis house, usually in silence.

Johnny didn't talk much, even to him. But he noticed how Johnny didn't flinch away from him, or how Johnny didn't mind quite as much if he got loud or angry. He noticed that Johnny trusted him.

So he let him stay. Normally, he would refuse to let someone stay with him in the small room he rented out, but he would make an exception. For Johnny.

Neither of them wanted the other to sleep on the floor, so it ended in both of them squeezed onto the small mattress. That was the arrangement every time  
Johnny stayed.

Normally, Johnny slept quietly. He always fell asleep first, and Dallas would lie there and listen his shallow breathing before falling asleep himself.

Tonight was different.

It started out the same, Johnny showing up on Buck's porch, Buck letting him in, and Johnny going up to Dally's room. Dallas throws him an old t-shirt to sleep in, and he falls asleep next to him.

This time though, Dallas didn't fall asleep to Johnny's shallow, yet calm breathing. He heard Johnny breath harshly.

He ignores it at first, assuming its nothing, but it happens again, and then he feels Johnny start to shake.

He rolls over onto his side, looking at him. It doesn't take long for him to notice the panic on Johnny's face, or how hes gone pale, or how he's mumbling to himself.

Dallas puts his hand out and gently shakes Johnny's shoulder.

"Johnnycakes? Wake up, man.." he says quietly. Yet, he doesn't recieve any sort of reaction other than Johnny tensing up more.

He shakes him again, this time with more force. "Johnny, come on. Wake up.." this time, Johnny's eyes shoot open and he flinches away from Dallas. He glances over at him, and then relaxes slightly.

"Did I scare you? Sorry, Dal.. I'm fine, I swear.." he mumbles quietly, barely loud enough for Dallas to hear.

"Johnnycakes, you don't gotta pretend anything. You were shakin and mumbling, that don't seem okay to me."

Johnny averts eye contact when Dally responds. He doesn't say anything.

Suddenly, Dallas moves to throw an arm over Johnny. For the first time in a while, Johnny flinches away from him. Dallas stops his arm and just looks at him, making eye contact again. After a minute, Johnny relaxes, and Dallas slowly moves his arm over his shoulder. Johnny glances at his arm, but remains quiet. He tenses a little when Dallas pulls him closer, both of them quiet now. 

Dallas watches as Johnny closes his eyes. After a few minutes, his breathing steadies out.

He thinks maybe they can both be okay, for atleast this moment.

**Author's Note:**

> this is. kinda short. but i tried my best
> 
> once again, please leave criticism! i appreciate it!


End file.
